The invention relates generally to devices used to remove or extract fish hooks from fish. More particularly, the device relates to such devices which comprise a loop on the end of a handled shank, the loop adapted to be placed around the fishing line and slid down to contact the hook and fish, thereby allowing the fish hook to be disengaging by rotating the fish.
Various devices have been developed to aid the fisherman in removal of a fish hook from a caught fish. The devices enable the fisherman to remove the hook without having to grasp the fish itself. This is preferable when the fish is to be released back into the water, as even minimal contact can be harmful to the fish, and is particularly useful in situations where a potentially dangerous fish such as a catfish or toadfish is caught and must be taken off the line without contacting the spines or teeth.
The basic concept of using a looped metal rod to disengage fish hooks is well known, as illustrated by Ford in U.S. Pat. No. 2,289,767. Ford discloses a device formed from a metal rod, with one end being bent upon itself to form a handle and the other end having a short portion turned back to form a hook or loop. To remove a fish without touching it, the looped end is slipped down the line to contact the fish. The fisherman holds the handle in one hand and grasps the fishing line in the other, separating them to produce a relatively horizontal alignment of the device and the line. The fish is then rotated about the horizontal axis, the motion causing the fish to be disengaged from the hook, whereupon it flies free with minimal damage and no direct contact.
Several improvements to this device have been developed, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,603,021 to Nunley and U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,957 to Bourquin , deceased et al. Nunley positions beads on the shaft down in the loop portion, the beads being used to guide the line and hook. Bourquin teaches a particularly angled bend to form the loop and adds a barb on the free end of the loop to prevent the line from slipping out before it is pulled taught.
While the above devices are all effective, they all suffer from the same problem. Because the hook is extracted by rotating the fish about a horizontal axis formed by pulling the line and device in opposite directions, tension forces are high along the horizontal axis and along the perpendicular rotational axis. This means that the forces combine to pull against the loop, such that over time and particularly when heavy fish are encountered the loop portion of the device will be pulled open. The user must then rebend the loop to its proper shape, which results in a weaker loop, and eventually the loop will break or become too weak to maintain the proper shape.
To prevent this problem, the invention improves on the design and construction of the standard devices by extending the end of the loop back down the shank to the handle and adding a hook, trigger or circle which can be gripped by one or more fingers of the user. In this manner, the loop cannot be bent out of shape during the rotation of the fish to remove the hook. This construction gives the user more control against the torque effects as well, especially when used with large fish, to prevent the device from twisting in the user's hand.